Introducing Hydraluron

There was a time when I would opt for the most abrasive of skincare to combat my more than oily skin. My skincare selection would resemble the teenage section of skincare in Boots opting for foaming (shudders) oil stripping face washes and mattifying moisturisers. Skip forward a few years and my skincare has changed dramatically. As I head towards my 30's I have found my skin to be more dehydrated (thanks to Carolines blog for pointing this out). To give an overview my skin can sometimes feel tight, its absorbs moisture like its going out of fashion yet can be prone to breakouts whilst still looking a tad on the oily side of normal. So after ticking all the boxes on Carolines tick sheet a self diagnosis of dehydrated skin was the conclusion and called for action. Out went the foam cleansers, and anything abrasive and in comes the oils and hydrating serums. The Clarins Lotus Oil has been on rotation in my skincare routine for sometime now. You can read my full post on this little gem here. For a while this was my go to alongside the cult Esteé Lauder Advanced Night Repair serum. A new addition to my evening routine is Hydraluron which I have been using alongside the Clarins Lotus oil to give my skin boost. I was initially introduced to this via Sarah over at Beauty Geek and I have not looked back since. When I heard that skincare guru Caroline had given it the thumbs up I knew I was onto a winner. Hydraluron boasts a hefty quantity of a Hyaluronic Acid which in the world of skincare is the current must have ingredient when it comes to hydration. To give you the spiel on what this ingredient does without getting too scientific on you, Hyaluronc Acid or HA as we will call it is found naturally in the body however as we age (boo, hiss) our ability to produce HA naturally decreases and needs a little helping hand so this is where Hydraluron steps in by inducing HA into your skin means that your skin can maintain water a lot more efficiently. The directions of this are simple. Use AM and PM prior to your usual moisturiser. In the evenings I have been slapping this on and then patting on a few pumps of Clarins Lotus Oil and pressing into my skin as a perfect skincare collaboration  Now needless to say that it is not one of those instant wow my skin looks amazing products. It takes time so persevere. After a few weeks of using it I have noticed that the dryness I used to experience around the crease of my nose has started to clear and makeup lasts a lot longer. Beforehand my skin would drink up the water in foundation and I would be left with a patchy mess by mid morning. This has definitely assisted in lesser touch ups required throughout the day. Now onto the nitty gritty, Hydraluron will set you back £24.95 for a 30ml tube of the stuff and at the time of this post was exclusive to Boots. The packaging is pretty plain and simple which by my books means you are paying for good product and not fancy packaging. You only need a small amount per use, a large pea size amount should do you good, and I have a biggish head to say the least and should last you a while. I am hitting the month mark and its still going strong. The plus side is that this is suitable for all ages so whatever your age I would highly recommend adding to your stash. 

SKINCARE HEROES

The problem with skincare and I is that I am always striving for the perfect product. Theres an obvious pattern when it comes to skincare and that is that I like to try a multitude of products and if if doesn't meet my expectations then its quickly thrown into the depths of a cupboard somewhere. You see I get bored easily and often if I don't see immediate results I give up. I know naughty me. But if I like a product then it usually sticks around for sometime. So heres the low down on my favourite products at the moment. 

My ultimate time to indulge in skincare goodies is before bed. In the morning A. I am too tired and B. I am usually in a rush which mean extreme cleansing goes out the window in favour of a quick cleanse and slap on of some serum. My current favourite being Drops of Youth by The Body Shop. You can read my whole spiel on that here.

So what comes out at nighttime then? I don't tend to wear heavy makeup during the day but I do like a little concealer, tinted moisturiser, bronzer, blusher, mascara and if I am feeling brave a sweep of eyeshadow. Sounds a lot but I promise this is a 5 minute face :-) Taking the Lisa Eldridge approach I like to double cleanse. Firstly I use The Sanctuary Ultimate Facial Cleansing Oil. One pump applied to a dry face literally melts away all traces of makeup including waterproof mascara which is a must for me as I only ever wear waterproof. I then use cotton wool pads to literally wipe it away, I tend to stick to the larger pads. One of these does the trick. With the smaller pads I usually need a couple. A top tip is to do your face first and then your eyes to avoid smearing mascara all over your face. Not a good look. Next up is the ultimate blogger favourite at the moment Emma Hardie Cleansing Balm which is an absolute dream to use. It applies like a balm which turns to almost an oil like texture when applied to the face and leaves my skin feeling ridiculously clean without the tightness. It has a rather unique aroma, which I would say is definitely a grower. I turned my nose up at first but now I bloomin' love it and genuinely look forward to using this of an evening. If I am feeling particularly lazy I will just use this and not bother with the oil as it does a good job of removing makeup. To remove it I use a good old flannel soaked in hot water to really work those pores. After cleansing and drying my face out comes the  Alpha H Liquid Gold. It has to be said that this is not something I use every single night just when my skin is feeling a bit meh and needs that little something something. My pores tend to clog easily (gross) and this just helps tighten them and generally give my skin a little glow the next day. Something I have been slapping on recently is the La Roche Pose Effaclar Duo. This is almost a serum which soaks into the skin almost immediately. It helps keep those pesky pimples at bay and I have definitely seen an improvement in the overall look and feel of my skin. If you need to add anything to your shopping list then this is it. Finally if my skin is feeling a little on the dryer side of the spectrum then I will rub in a small amount of Embryolisse. This is something I picked up in Paris so I am not sure if you can get it over here so easily but if you ever get the chance then I highly recommend  Its definitely a light to medium moisturiser but it does the business. Finally a slick of my trusted Blistex intense and I am good for bed. 

LUSH TEA TREET TONER TABS

So Sunday I pranced off to the bathroom, old Glossy Box in hand filled to the brim with skincare goodies ready to make the most of the boyfriend being at work and indulge in the ultimate facial pampering session. So cue the newbies to the clan - Lush Toner Tabs!

Its no secret that I love steaming my face. I love sweating out all the nasties and the clean feeling afterwards so when I saw these little gems in a rare visit to Lush I snapped them up for less than a quid each. They are basically small bath bombs which you had to steaming hot water. They fizz up, not greatly but enough. I tend to then lean over the bowl of hot water with a towel and soak up the steam for a good ten minutes. 

These ones are the T tree version which I picked up when my skin was looking at bit meh and have just got around to using them. I would not say these are mind boggling but if you are someone that enjoys steaming their face on a regular basis then they would definitely be a welcome edition. 

You can pick up the toner tabs both in store and at Lush online here.

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REN Glycolactic Radiance Renewal Mask

Hello there friends! I am back from Paris and currently awaiting a delivery van to come and pick up the mountains of boxes which have been moved to the hallway of my parents house. So what better way to fill the time than a little blogging! This review has been a long time coming and I wanted to give the product a full test before I could report back to you guys and I have to say that even now I am still on the fence about this product! 

Some time ago I bought the REN Glycolactic radiance renewal mask after hearing some other bloggers singing its praises. After buying the full sized bottle which is a hefty £38 for 50ml I was actually sent the sample sized via Whats in my Handbag. In hindsight I wish I had waited for this as I am not sure whether I would of purchased the full sized after trialling it. The idea of the mask is that rather than exfoliating the top layer of skin it actually penetrates through the layers to enable new skin cells to grow thus leaving you with a more radiant complexion. I used this after cleansing my skin. I usually use an old foundation brush to apply masks but this worked better using my finger tips to massage it into the skin, although it was rather messy and stick and what I can only describe as rubbing honey or jam all over my face, a very strange formulation to say the least. The aroma however is something I like, almost citrusy like bitter oranges. I know that this is going to be a love it or hate it scent. After about 10 minutes, I use a muslin cloth to remove. This is the nasty bit, even after several rinses I can't help but feel that there is a sticky residue left? Maybe this is just me? My skin definitely feels softer after using and a tad more plump, but for almost 40 quid I want the WOW factor with immediate results and unfortunately it did not give me that. Yes its a nice mask but the price tag alone puts me off purchasing again which is a shame as I am a fan of REN skincare. 

Have you tried this and what were your thoughts? Yay or nay?

Liz Earle Cleanse & Polish | Review

Liz Earle is a brand that I go back to time and time again and over the past year I have come to own a plethora of their cult products. The one product which I will always use is their Cleanse and Polish. Renowned in the blogging community for its amazing cleansing abilities this is the one product I will always return to when my skin needs an immediate boost.

Designed to suit all skin types it is packed full of natural ingredients such as eucalyptus and cocoa butter and is designed to fully cleanse the skin whilst helping to clear and smooth at the same time. As with all Liz Earle products this has a distinctive herbal aroma, something that I personally find pleasantly soothing.

The product itself is designed to work in 2 phases. The first phase being to cleanse. I add a pump and a half between my fingers and then work into my skin. The great thing about this product is that you can use it across the eye area without worrying about it stinging. I tend to do my face first and then the eye area last to save smudging mascara and other eye makeup across my face. The second phase is to polish. You do this using the soft muslin cloth which comes with the starter kit however you can buy these separately for a few quid! I will soak the muslin cloth in as hot water I can handle and then start removing the product using circular motions which means your skin gets a good exfoliation at the same time. Unlike some cleansers I have tried this does not leave my skin feeling tight nor dry just ridiculously smooth and moisturised.

In my own opinion this is like magic in a bottle, seriously and I love the fact that despite being of the higher end range you won’t break the bank purchasing it. The starter kit* is available for £14.25 and includes a soft pouch, a 100ml bottle of Cleanse and Polish and 2 muslin cloths, so its an absolute steal. If you are looking to introduce someone or even yourself to this cult product then this is definitely a good start.

Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish is available from John Lewis and all larger department stores or you can visit the Liz Earle website by clicking the link to find out further details about the brand

Do you use the Cleanse and Polish?

*PR Sample

Paris wishlist!

Product images from google - Paris symbol - weheartit.com

Let the countdown commence guys!

In case you hadn't heard, I am not sure how you couldn't considering I have been banging on about it for the past week or so (oops) but I am off to Qui Paris in just over 2 weeks!

Aside from all the exciting touristy site seeing adventures, yes I do like to act like a right tourist, camera around neck the full shebang, I shall be indulging in a few beauty treats. Its my birthday the week beforehand and my parents are very kindly giving me a little spending money so it would be rude not to right?

Ok, so the list is not huge...yet, but these are just a few of the main products I am hoping to pick up, feel free to add to the list :-)

1. Bioderma Créaline H2O 

I have got through 2 bottles of this stuff which I purchased via a very reliable albeit eBay source, but as I ran out I did not want to fork out again and have been loving the No. 7 cleansing water as a great alternative. However being that it is considerably cheaper in the capital I will be sure to pick up 1 or 2 bottles to keep me going!

2. Make Up Forever HD foundation

Hmmm there have been some mixed reviews on this but I am one of those people that I have to try it for myself once I have an idea in my head and this has been on my makeup wish list for an eternity. 

3. Caudalie beauty elixir

Again I have got through about 2 bottles of this stuff. OK its not too expensive over here to be quite honest but it will be interesting to see the price comparison in France. Plus I am keen to check out more of the Caudalie range especially their perfumes!

4. Embryolisse moisturiser

From what I gather this is just a generic moisturiser however apparently it provides a great base for makeup, and is good for all skin types. I am pretty sure I will pick some up for my mum too or else she will be pinching mine, cheeky!

So not a huge amount of products but its a start! Do you have any suggestions? Oh, and keep your eyes peeled for some travel themed posts and more french skincare!

Purity Conditioning Cleanser Lotion | Review

When the queen of makeup Lisa Eldridge recommends a product then you know its bound to be a winner, right? Purity is a brand which I was none too familiar with but when I was given the opportunity to test out a few of their products I was intrigued. After reading a tad more about the brand itself I was pretty darn impressed. Not only is Purity a British brand but it basically boasts 'intelligent' ingredients whereby 98% of them are naturally grown. No nasty's in this brand so to speak! I was keen to test out product of the month 'the conditioning cleansing lotion'* which is designed to break down and remove makeup effectively. Being a Bioderma girl I was a little wary about trading in my go-to product and replacing it with a cream based cleanser as I can find the latter can be a tad messy in comparison. After a little fight with the pump style applicator which I am assuming I got a dud as it did not work no matter how hard I tried and aside from squirting it in an upwards direction I ended up resorting to pouring the product into my palms. The consistency is rather runny but when applied to the face is absolutely fine. I worked it around my entire face in circular motions leaving the eye area to last to avoid putting mascara all over my face. I then took a clean cotton pad and removed all the product. 2-3 cotton pads is suffice and about the same amount I would use with Bioderma anyway. The incredible thing about this product is how well it removes waterproof mascara something I struggle with using Bioderma. Seriously a couple of sweeps and its gone. Plus no irritation when applied to the eye area, bonus! With heavier makeup you may need a couple of applications but I found that it removed a majority of my makeup before giving my skin a deep cleanse with my usual Chanel cleanser. The good thing about these products is that they all retail at less than a tenner which is pretty reasonable compared to some good cleansers on the market. Aside from the dodgy applicator, this is the perfect go-to product in my personal opinion and if its good enough for Lisa then its good enough for us right :-).

Purity is available to purchase in selected Superdrug stores and online at http://www.purityorganicskincare.co.uk

All their products are priced at £10 or less!

*PR Sample

   

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